“Enough,” Maddie muttered. Leaning on the sink, she stood slowly and breathed her way through the pain. She managed to remove her shorts, underwear and T-shirt but was stymied by her bra. Her injured hand wouldn’t cooperate to release the four tight hooks. Teary eyed from the pain in her hand, she reached for a towel and wrapped it around herself. “Mac?”

“What’d you need, honey?”

The endearment made her swoon with desire. How she wished she could be his honey, but it wasn’t going to happen. Having feelings for a man who lived thousands of miles away was foolish and risky. “I, um, I need some help.” Just the thought of him seeing the old-lady bra made her feel sick.

“Do you want me to come in?”

Swallowing hard, she said, “Please.”

The door opened, and his face went slack at the sight of her in a towel.

“Try not to ogle, will you please?”

“Who’s ogling?”

“You are.”

He seemed to make an effort to focus on her face.

“Can you, um, unhook my bra? Please?” She watched his Adam’s apple bob up and down in the strong column of his throat.

“Sure,” he said in a strangled tone.

Maddie turned and let the towel drop just enough to give him access. His fingers brushed against her back, and she gasped.

“Sorry.”

“S’okay.” She held her breath while he worked on the hooks.

“All set.”

“Thank you.”

Maddie waited for him to leave, but instead, he pushed the straps aside.

“They cut into your skin.”

“Yes.” His lips brushed her right shoulder, and she stiffened in surprise. “W-what’re you doing?”

“I have no idea.”

Sensation tingled through her, making her tremble. “Mac—”

He kissed the indentation on her left shoulder while continuing to massage the other side. “Can I ask you something?”

“If I say yes, will it get you out of here so I can shower?”

“Uh-huh.”

“What’s the question?”

“Since you hate them so much, do you ever think about having them reduced?”

Turning, she stared at him. “Seriously? That’s your question?”

“I’m sorry. It’s none of my business. I shouldn’t have—”

“Every day since sixth grade! I hate them! They’ve totally ruined my life!”

“So, why don’t you . . . you know . . .”

“I don’t have health insurance or thousands of dollars.”

“I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“It is what it is.” Looking up at him, she said, “May I take a shower now?”

“Yeah, sure.” He turned to go. “I’ll be right out here. If you need me. Again.”

Once the door closed, Maddie dropped the towel and stared into the full-length mirror affixed to the back of the door. Her breasts looked like mini-cantaloupes, her hips were too round and curvy, her belly not quite as flat as it had been before Thomas. Despite backaches, shoulder spasms and a variety of skin issues, she’d learned to live with breasts that developed far too early and gave the teenage boys in her class plenty to obsess about. Some days she wished she could wave a magic wand and wake up with normal-sized breasts. Then maybe every man she encountered would actually focus on her face rather than her chest. A girl could dream.